Practical and Emerging Issues in Subchapter V

Diaz Crespo is a consultant with Dage Consulting CPAs, PSC in San Juan, P.R., and provides litigation support, business valuation and financial forensics services. He previously was a consulting and audit manager with Aquino, De C?rdova, Alfaro & Co., LLP and a senior auditor with KPMG. Mr. Diaz Crespo received his undergraduate degree in 1997 in accounting from the University of Puerto Rico and his J.D. in 2018 from the University of Puerto Rico School of Law.

Amy Denton Mayer has more than 21 years of restructuring experience and specializes in the representation of debtors, assignors, committees, creditors, trustees, assignees, purchasers, and other parties in bankruptcy cases, assignments for the benefit of creditors, and out of court workouts. She has been particularly active in the representation of real estate developers, home builders, contractors, medical practices and physicians, agribusinesses, independent and franchised restaurant chains and other food service companies, and business entrepreneurs.

Mrs. Mayer joined Stichter, Riedel, Blain, & Postler P.A. in March of 2003 and became a shareholder in 2010. She received her J.D. with honors in 2002 from the University of Florida. While in law school, Mrs. Mayer interned for The Honorable Paul M. Glenn and The Honorable Michael G. Williamson, Bankruptcy Judges, Middle District of Florida.

Although her passion is serving as an advocate and helping clients navigate legal issues in and out of court, she also serves as a Subchapter V Trustee in small business cases filed under the Small Business Reorganization Act of 2019, as amended. She was appointed by the Office of the United States Trustee in February 2020, and has been appointed as Subchapter V Trustee in over 101 cases to date. In her capacity as Trustee, Mrs. Mayer’s primary role is to facilitate resolution of disputes between the debtor, creditors, and other parties in interest and facilitate the expeditious and economical confirmation of a plan. While the Subchapter V Trustee role carries other statutory and fiduciary duties, which Mrs. Mayer performs, she enjoys working with the parties to find creative solutions to solve financial and legal issues and avoid protracted and expensive litigation.

Robert J. Keach is co-chair of Bernstein Shur’s Business Restructuring and Insolvency Practice Group. He is a Fellow of the American College of Bankruptcy and a Past President (2009-2010) of the American Bankruptcy Institute. Bob is also the co-chair of the ABI’s Commission to Study the Reform of Chapter 11.

Bob focuses on the representation of various parties in workouts and bankruptcy cases, including debtors, creditors, creditors committees, lessors and third parties acquiring troubled companies and/or their assets. He has appeared as a panelist on national bankruptcy, lender liability and creditors rights programs, and is the author of several articles on bankruptcy and creditors’ rights appearing in the ABI Law Review, Commercial Law Journal and ABI Journal, among other publications. Keach is a contributing author to Collier Guide to Chapter 11: Key Topics and Selected Industries (2011 Ed.).

He is recognized as a “Star Individual” in Corporate M&A/Bankruptcy in Chambers USA, in Best Lawyers in America (Ten-Year Certificate), and by New England Super Lawyers (Bankruptcy and Top 100 Lawyers in New England regardless of specialty). Bob is also certified in business bankruptcy by the American Board of Certification.

Currently, Bob serves as the chapter 11 trustee in the railroad reorganization case of Montreal Maine & Atlantic Railway, Ltd., a cross-border restructuring case. Bob is also the fee examiner in the Exide Technologies case in Delaware; he was also the fee examiner in In re AMR Corporation (the chapter 11 cases of American Airlines and its parent and certain affiliates). Bob has also, inter alia, represented ad hoc committees in the Homebanc Mortgage, New Century TRS Holdings, and Nortel Networks cases in Delaware, as well as a public utilities commission in the FairPoint Communications case in the Southern District of New York.

Enrique S. Lamoutte is the chief judge for the United States bankruptcy court, District of Puerto Rico. He was first appointed to the court on November 7, 1986, and his current term will expire on November 6, 2028. Lamoutte was elevated to the position of chief judge, serving in that role from 1986 to 1998, and again from 2009 through the present date.

Prior to joining the court, Lamoutte began his legal career with a two-year clerkship at the U.S. District Court, followed by a four-year clerkship at the U.S. Bankruptcy Court. He then took a position with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Puerto Rico, where he led the Civil Division from 1983 until he was asked to take the bench in 1986.

Lamoutte earned a bachelor's degree from Boston College and a J.D. from the University of Puerto Rico